Sick Leave
by Jaina Durron
Summary: Leia is overwhelmed and terrified when she gets a call from the kids' daycare.


Leia was getting tired of all the pointless arguing and bickering. The Provisional Council had been at it for about three hours straight now and no one was any closer to getting their way than when they had started. Leia had given up a while ago, seeing that everyone was too irritated to actually get anything done. She'd put herself to work with running over her reports, going over some last-minute edits, and thinking about every other thing she _could_ be doing right now if she didn't have to be here. Her children came to mind; her five year-old twins and three and a half year-old Anakin. Busy with assignments tasked by her husband's friends, Winter was not watching them today. Instead, Leia and Han had found a decent daycare place and the children were there because Leia _refused_ to have another episode like the last time Threepio had baby-sat.

Shuddering at the mere thought, Leia suddenly started when her comm rang. The other politicians so deep in their argument, the ring didn't disturb anyone else. Leia quickly slipped out and answered the call. "Organa Solo," she said.

" ," a naturally cheery, warm voice responded. "Hello. This is Ferreih from Small Hopes Daycare. Your daughter Jaina has gotten sick and you need to come pick her up as soon as possible, please."

"Of course," Leia sighed, nodding. "I'm coming."

* * *

When Leia arrived at the daycare canter, she was quickly greeted by her sons who hurried to tell her how awful their sister was looking. "Jaya face white!" little Anakin told her, pointing back to where a daycare teacher was sitting with Jaina. When Leia looked, sure enough, Anakin was right. Jaina's face was pale and gaunt, her eyes dark with heavy bags. She looked up when Leia approached and uttered a soft, "Hi."

"Hi, kiddo," Leia responded, her fear mounting. As horrible as it made her feel, Leia still had little parenting experience. Winter had always taken care of the kids and stayed with them on hidden, isolated planets. When faced with even a small weekend visit, Leia was completely out of her comfort zone and overwhelmed with the three children. This new situation in particular was something she'd never dealt with before and it scared her because she had no idea what to do.

Jaina slowly stood and Leia took her hand, walking out of the daycare. "Let's go home so you can lie down," she told her daughter with Jacen and Anakin following. "Then, maybe, you can eat some crackers and watch your favorite holoshow. How does that sound?" Jaina only nodded, her head leaning against Leia's hip. Leia got the little ones into the speeder drove back home. It was a good half hour drive home . When they did get home, though, Leia went to the back door to check on Jaina and was shocked to see Jaina looking even worse. Leia bit back a gasp, taking a breath and holding her arms out to Jaina. "Hey, sweetie. Why don't I just carry you, okay? Yeah, I'll carry you upstairs. Does that sound better?"

Jaina gave a moan in response. Leia picked her up and ascended the staircase to their apartment, careful not to jostle her as she went. Leia handed her keys to Jacen to unlock the door and brought Jaina straight to her bed. She laid her down, tucked her in her blankets and told her, "I'm going to change really quick, alright? I'll be right back."

She left the boys in the living room to watch cartoons and hurried to change, exchanging her meeting's clothes for sweats and a t-shirt. She went back to Jaina's bedroom. There she found Jaina where she'd left her, but she was now lying in a pool of vomit, her eyes looking dead. She turned up her gaze to meet Leia's and muttered, "I'm sorry I threw up."

Leia took until then to clam herself. Pulling the sheets off of the bed, she quickly assured her daughter, "No! No, baby, it's okay. It's not your fault. I'm sorry I wasn't here. Let's get you washed up and then maybe we can try some crackers." She pulled Jaina's shirt over her head and dropped it by the door, picking her up. "Wow, honey. You're burning up." Jaina's head lolled, falling to rest against Leia's shoulder. Leia stopped, slowly set her down on her bed again and really looked at her. She looked half dead and Leia was starting to panic. She tried to recall everything her father Bail used to do for her when she got sick, but Jaina seriously looked dead and Leia didn't know what to do. Nervous, she seized her comm from her pocket and keyed in Han's number.

"Hey, Princess. What's up? I thought you were going to be in meetings this morning-"

"I was, but Jaina got sick and I'm really worried."

"Sweetheart, just let her rest and she'll be fine."

"No, Han, she looks dead. I'm not even kidding." She ran a hand back through her hair. Tears of panic started racing down her cheeks and Leia also noted, to prove her nervousness, that her speaking pace had picked up quite a bit. "I think I'm going to take her to the med-center."

"Are you sure she's that bad?"

"Han, she's so weak and she's throwing up and she's hot and she's not talking-!"

"Alright, calm down. Take a deep breath."

"Han!" Leia cried, kneeling down in front of Jaina and wiping back her sweaty hair. "Han, I'm scared."

"It's okay. If you think you need to take her, then go ahead. I'm coming, alright. Just calm down. Everything's going to be alright. I'll see you soon, okay, Princess?"

"Okay." Leia picked up Jaina again and rushed out of her room, slipping her own jacket over Jaina's body and stepping into a pair of furry boots in her rush. She pulled Threepio out of a closet and flicked his circuit breaker. "Threepio, I need you to watch the boys while I'm gone."

"Of course, Mistress Leia, but might I inquire-"

"There's leftovers in the cooling unit from a couple nights ago," Leia quickly said, opening the door. "Then, you have the holoscreen and juice with the leftovers. You should be fine. I'll call soon, okay?"

She hurried out with Jaina in her arms, trying to keep herself calm. She prayed that she wasn't making Jaina nervous, but she wasn't sure that her daughter could even notice. Leia buckled her up in the front passenger seat so she could keep an eye on her, jumped to her own seat, and took off.

It was a short drive to the med-center, but it seemed to Leia to take forever. Every few seconds she'd look to Jaina and quickly turn her gaze, reminding herself over and over that it wouldn't help to panic. It was too late for that, though. Time soon dissolved and could only be measured by Leia's panic as it continued to grow and the rapid rate at which her heartbeat pounded in her chest. Maybe, this wasn't that bad. Maybe Jaina just had a fever. What did it matter? This was Leia's baby girl and to see her so sick twisted at her heart. Maybe she was a terrible mother and if she were a decent one she'd know how to handle the situation. Maybe she would, but Leia didn't and she only got to see her kids so often and she hated that. But here she was in her mad state of panic and this was how things were. She didn't know if Jaina was okay or dying. Leia was worried because this was her baby girl and that was all that mattered.

Leia pulled into the med-center's parking lot and parked haphazardly near the front. She scooped Jaina back into her arms and hurried inside.

The med-center's lobby was swarming with nurses and patients and visitors, but many stopped as they saw Leia rush in, carrying Jaina; Leia, with tears of panic and fear streaming down her face, Jaina, looking so pale. "I need help!" Leia cried. "It's my daughter! I don't know if she's okay or not."

"It'll be alright," one nurse tried to assure Leia, taking Jaina from her arms. "We'll take care of her."

With a heavy heart, Leia let them take her daughter from her arms, but Jaina, even in her weak state, mumbled, "No." She opened her eyes and held her mother's teary gaze. She attempted to reach out for Leia, one arm sneaking above the nurse's shoulder. "Mommy," she cried and Leia bit back a long sob, hiding her mouth behind a hand. "I want Mommy!"

"Oh, baby," Leia cried and closed her eyes because she could no longer watch as the entourage of nurses and doctors rushed off, carrying her daughter. Her baby girl.  
Leia turned around and walked over to a set of chairs. She sat down, grabbed a magazine, and threw it to the ground, deciding that she wouldn't be able to distract herself like that. Was she really that horrible a mother, Leia considered, that she couldn't handle a case of her daughter getting sick? She couldn't handle some vomit? A pale daughter? A weak, sick daughter? Leia bit her lip, wishing that she could take back every day her children had spent with Winter and spend them together with her own children. She would never waste a minute with them, she swore to herself. She would hold them close and tell them how much she loved them. And she would know exactly what to do when they got sick or cried or were tired. She would know what to do because she was their mother and a mother always knows how to care for their a child. Except for Leia.

* * *

Leia had no idea how long had passed. It had felt like hours, but came to realize that it had only been several minutes when a nurse hurried to approach her. Alarmed and afraid, Leia sat bolt upright and asked the lady, "Is she okay?"

"She keeps asking for you," the lady with the soft brown skin said, gesturing with her head back down the hall. "She's being stubborn and we were hoping that you might be able to help."

Leia nodded and hurried, following the nurse to her daughter's room. There, in that room, she saw her daughter in the middle of the room on a medbed, surrounded by nurses and doctors, screaming, trying to fight off the medical staff. Leia entered the room, trying to stay composed. But she couldn't. When Jaina saw that Leia was here, she screamed for her. "Mommy!" She held out her arms and thrashed her body the best she could, but Leia could tell that Jaina was still very weak and it was hurting her with the effort. She hurried over and squeezed through the mob to make it to Jaina's side. She wiped the girl's tears away and Jaina continued crying, only slightly out of relief upon seeing her mother. "Mom," she cried, her voice hoarse and weak. "Mommy, I wanna go home."

"I know you do, baby. I do, too." Leia wiped Jaina's hair back from her face and sat on the bed, pulling Jaina's small body into her lap. "Listen to me though. I know you're scared right now, but it's going to be okay. I need you to calm down, sweetie. These nurses and doctors are just trying to help you. They're going to help you feel better alright? Now, look at me. Look at Mommy. It's going to be okay. Just relax, Jaya. Mommy's here and I'm not leaving. I wouldn't let these people anywhere near you if I thought they might hurt you. Everything's just fine, Jaya. Just calm down and it'll be over before you know it. Trust me, sweetie."

Jaina loudly exhaled, her exhale shuddering due to her sobs. Leia smiled lightly at her, encouragingly as she caressed her daughter's face in her hands and waited for her to relax. "That's my girl," she beamed once Jaina's cries had died down to silence. "That's my strong girl."

One nurse took a syringe and Leia kept her daughter's attention, distracting her from the syringe. "You know how much I love you?" Leia asked, drawing a faint smile from Jaina. "From Sernpidal to Polis Massa," the girl responded and Leia nodded. "That's right."

* * *

Han Solo raced down the hospital's halls, his heart booming in his chest. He wasn't sure if Jaina was okay or not, but the fact that she was still in the hospital did not comfort him. He skidded to a stop before an open door. Peering inside, he saw his wife sitting with their daughter in her medbed. Han smiled at the sight, watching them laugh and talk together. But, too soon, Leia noticed him there and smiled. Han quickly glanced at Jaina and said to Leia, "She doesn't look dead."

"Well, she's doing better now." Leia stood up and rushed over to hug him. "I'm glad you're here."

Han nodded, slowly going to his daughter's bedside. "You feeling alright, kid?"

Jaina nodded, smiling happily. "Mm hm! Mom stayed with me the whole time the nurses and doctors were working on me and when I started feeling better, she made Uncle Luke go out and buy us frozen treats!" She indicated an empty frozen treat container with her hand. Han smiled. "Someone's being spoiled! Are you sure you're feeling alright now?"

"Yes, Daddy! I'm fine! Mommy was here, remember?"


End file.
